Solving the Big E-Commerce Video Problem - In Real Time! [Video]

At the Video Commerce Summit, Liveclicker's Xavier Casanova, CEO & Co-Founder, Justin Foster, Co-Founder/VP of Market Development and Kenna Hurd, Account Development and Video Production Specialist took us through a working demonstration of one of the biggest innovations in the company's history, their new 'plug and play' video production software, Mobile Studio.

Why is it so important to innovate in video? The industry is still very young but has changed so much in the past 5 or 6 years. First we had Windows Media Player, then came the Flash player, then YouTube arrived and all of a sudden video creators realised they could distribute much more content in many more places. Of course, it's now mobile distribution that's the big game changer. It all keeps changing, what works today may not work in a years time. Liveclicker themselves acknowledge that they have to keep innovating just to keep up with the market and to differentiate themselves from their competitors. If they are different and do things that no other company does, then they pass on the same advantage to their clients.

How To Produce Effective E-Commerce Video With Limited Resources

Kenna Hurd acknowledge the three main obstacles retailers and brands face when producing, publishing and distributing video content:

Lack of time - marketing teams are often juggling many projects

Lack of budget - this is a real issue, especially when then the concept is untested

Lack of expertise - the whole process, from start to finish incorporates a huge number of different skills which is often outside of the scope of many in-house marketing teams.

Liveclicker have a sturdy and effective platform but wanted to see what else they could provide for their clients to make things easier. They started with addressing the problems of production and looked for a solution that would have the greatest revenue impact for their clients.

With feedback from the data generated by existing clients. short, simple product videos seemed to have the most impact. Particularly those under 90 seconds long, that were single take or talking head videos. These generated 24% more revenue and 14% higher order value than other video types. Liveclicker introduced a 'plug and play' template to their 'Desktop Studio' software so clients could upload different footage to cut right back on the editing needed. The software did everything for you, including adding transitions. However, clients weren't adopting this due to certain technological barriers. It was a great idea but not workable. The company worked hard to find a solution and the upgraded software turned to the iPad and the iPhone to help. Kenna and Justin then took us through the making of a video using their new product.

Producing A Simple One Shot Product Video: The Costs

Although Liveclicker confirm that the cost of video production can be extremely manageable, there is still a need for some basic eqipment that will make your video look professional and of high quality. The cost of this equipment can be achieved for under $1500. Mobile Studio will work in an indoor or outdoor setting but you are limited by the capability of the iOS device you are using in terms of audio and camera resolution.

The recording process started, with Kenna shooting around three short segments from pre-selected templates:

The uploading and rendering of the raw footage took around 2 minutes. In the meantime, an audio track was added. There's also a 360 feature which is a very innovative feature and the ability to set a thumbnail image.

Internet retailer Brookstone have adopted Mobile Studio in house and are using it to find the best presenters for their up and coming video campaign. The free Mobile Studio app is available now from iTunes.